House hearing: HB186 would add sixth member to Montana Board of Pardons and Parole to ease heavy caseload

Representative Amy Regier opened the House Judiciary Committee hearing on House Bill 186 by saying the bill "simply increases the number on the Board of Pardons and Parole from 5 to 6 members." She told the committee the change is intended to help the board manage an increased annual caseload that followed statutory changes in 2017.

Why it matters: Proponents said HB186 would give the board flexibility to staff three-member hearing panels, provide vacation relief for panel members and improve timeliness in statutory hearing windows. Supporters said the professionalized parole board now hears many more cases annually and that adding one member would produce meaningful scheduling and operational benefits.

Jimmy Patelis, a current parole-board member, told the committee the board used to be larger before a 2017 professionalization; since then the board has seen a large increase in hearings and scheduling pressure. "It's pretty demanding, when you can imagine sitting through 15 to 20 hearings a day," Patelis said, and he described a roughly…